Wrap-around wedge welt for goodyear welt construction



Feb. 21, 1967 v. A. SHERBROOK WRAP'AROUND WEDGE WELT FOR GOODYEAR WELT CONSTRUCTION Filed sept. so, 1963 FIG.

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l IO INVENTOR VICTOR A. SHERBROOK BY M@ ATTORNEY United States Patent F 3,304,630 WRAP-AROUND WEDGE WELT FR GOODYEAR WELT CONSTRUCTION Victor A. Sherbrook, 164 Colonel Hunt Drive, Abington, Mass. 0235i` Filed Sept. 30, 1963, Ser. No. 312,429 6 Claims. (Cl. 36-17) This invention relates to a new and improved wraparound welting especially adapted for welt shoes having a platform appearance and preferably utilizing cemented outsoles, and the principal object of the invention resides in the provision of improved wrap-around welt incorporating a wedge strip providing a firm pier or solid base for attachment of cemented outsoles while at the same time providing the platform appearance to the construction by locating the welting partly over the outer edge of the insole and relatively higher on the wall of the last while at the same time providing a low inseam for reduction of the thickness of the filler and improved ilexibility of the sole construction.

Other objects of the invention include the provision of a welting which includes a relatively wide, thin, flexible welt strip and a thick wedge strip, said wedge strip having the welting strip substantially wrapped around it or covering two sides of the Wedge, providing a shape resembling a platform type of shoe. However, the new welt overlaps the edge of the insole and extends up onto the wall of the last, the welt being wrapped over the wedge and as far as or over the inseam lip, providing an irnproved base for the securement of outsoles by cementing.

Another object of the invention resides particularly in the provision of the new wrap-around Welt construction described above in whic-h the welting strip is relatively wide and tiexible and has along an edge thereof the wedge strip above described, this wedge strip having in general a substantially flat surface extending from a relatively wide edge adjacent the edge of the welt strip, and tapering inwardly, having a gradually decreasing thickness terminating in a relatively narrow edge, the welt strip being wrapped around or over the narrow edge and the flat face. ln some cases the welt strip also extends over the wider edge of the wedge, the wider edge initially extending along the upper leather and over the inseam, overlapping the insole at the edges thereof and extending relatively higher on the last, thus providing the platform appearance and at the same time a Welt strip base for adhering a soie thereto, while at the same time the inseam construction is such as to retain or improve the flexibility of the insole.

The invention also contemplates the provision of certain novel ornamentation applied to the new welt strip in a predetermined location, so that when the welt strip is wrapped around over the wedge strip as described the ornamentation will appear at a certain predetermined desired location.

By the use of the construction herein a platform type of shoe is provided in which the platform appears more or less conventional but actually overlaps the insole, i.e., is higher on the last, and therefore t-he sole of the foot rests on the insole or sock liner in a relatively low position with respect to the upper edge of the platform so that a relatively thin outsole can be applied if desired, thus increasing the flexibility of the sole.

The invention further relates to arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and more particularly set forth in the appended claims,

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an enlarged perspective view of the novel welt strip;

Bdldili@ Patented Feb. 2l., 11967 ICC FIG. 2 is a plan view thereof on a reduced scale; FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating the application Y of the welt strip to the insole;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FlG. 3 showing a modification;

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating the shoe with the invention applied thereto, and

FlGS. 6 and 7 are views similar to FIG. 3 showing modifications.

First referring now to FIG. l there is shown a strip of welt material which is indicated `by the reference numeral liti. This welt strip is a rnuch wider strip than normal and this strip can be made substantially endless if made of plastic, but if made of leather it can be made in the usual manner in connected length so as to be substantially endless.

Adjacent one edge of the strip ld there is applied theret0 another strip of less width, this strip being referred to as a wedge strip and indicated by the reference numeral l2. The wedge strip l2 is preferably generally triangular in section as clearly shown in FIG. l, having a relatively Wide edge lf?, which as shown in FIG. 1 is coextensive with the 'edge le of strip l0. The strip l2 then extends inwardly over the surface of the welt strip lil for a relatively short distance, terminating in a relatively narrow edge ld. The exposed surface which is indicated at 2() will therefore be seen to be at a relative incline with respect to the general piane of the welt strip iti, and in this surface there is provided a longitudinal groove 22 for a purpose to be described. Surface Ztl is preferably generally fiat. v

The strip l2 is cemented or otherwise secured to the welt strip. If made of plastic, the two strips may be extruded in a single manner. The welt strip l@ may have ornamental means such as stitching 2id which extends parallel with the strips and preferably very slightly spaced from the narrow edge it? of strip Zd. If desired, other stitching such as 26 may also be applied. These ornamental devices may be of any kind, whether stitches or impressions, grooving, braid, etc.

Referring to FIG. 3 there is shown an insole at 28, this insole having a sewing rib 3d. Sewing rib 3i) may be of any construction desired and is preferably provided as an upstanding edge of a continuous tape 32, but other forms of sewing ribs maybe utilized. The upper leather is indicated by reference numeral 34 and is applied to the lip 30 in the usual manner.

The novel welting of the present case is applied by securing the edge thereof at l to the upper leather generally coinciding therewith and the Wedge strip is seen to extend down along the upper leather overlapping the edge at 36 of the insole 28. The welt strip l@ is then wrapped around over surface Ztl, edge 14 of the wedge strip, and edge i6 of the welting to then overlie the edge of the sewing rib Sli as is indicated at 40.

Before the welting is brought around over the Wedge l2, the wedge is cemented or sewn as is indicated by the line of stitching at 42 and this seam extends through the welting strip l0, the upper 34 and the sewing lip at 30. Now the shoe is ready to have the outsole cemented thereto and it can extend as far upwardly beyond the welting l0 in FIG. 3 as may be desired but in any event it fills in the area above the insole 28 so that there is no platform filler material needed, but the regular filling material is used.

The groove 22 provides an anchor for the stitching indicated at 42 and the welting 10 can be cemented down on the edge 14 of the wedge strip and the edge of the sewing rib. Of course trimming if found necessary can be performed and areas pre-roughened for the application of the outsole. Also at this point the usual bottom iller can be applied to ll the slight cavity between the trimmed off sewing ribs. The filler may be cork, felt, plastic, etc. but is preferably sponge or foam rubber. Cement may be applied to the parts as shown in FIG. 3 in order to cement the welt strip to the outside surface of the wedge strip and also to the lip, upper leather, etc.

This construction forms a platform-like welt seam construction having a substantially square or flat outer edge and when the outsole is applied a platform type of shoe is provided. The platform is provided by the turned-over or wrapped-around welt strip 10 which is backed up, strengthened and made to be solid and square by means of the generally triangular shape wedge strip.

A modified form of the invention is shown in FIG. 4 where the parts are all the same except that the wedge strip here indicated at 44 has a cutaway area at 46 forming a projection 4S abutting the upper leather at the edge thereof. The edge of the welt strip at 50 is secured to the wedge strip 44 along this cutout edge and it will be seen that the wide end 48 is wider in proportion to the narrow end thereof at 52 than is the case with respect to the wedge parts in FIG. 3. The method of application is the same as before described but a squarer outline can be provided by this construction.

In any event, the novel welt construction of this invention may be applied to insoles on a last about the periphery of the sole or only in the forepart thereof if this should be desired, and all of the objects of the invention are seen to be carried out in a novel and efficient manner. The platform type of shoe is provided in which the sole may be of any thickness beyond the thickness of the welt strip in a direction normal to the insole. Also this cnstruction provides that a smaller or narrower sewing rib 30 can be used, thus increasing the liexibility of the shoe while at the same time a good solid basis is provided for the application of the cemented outsole to the shoe and any necessity for platform filler material is completely done away with.

The stitching at 24, 26 will appear as shown in FIG. 5 or in some other manner, depending upon the kind of stitching utilized, and the line which is indicated in FIG. 5 at 54 indicates the approximate line of the sock liner and the position of the sole of the foot in the shoe.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show modifications wherein the welt wrap strip 56 is applied and positioned as before relative to the upper and the wedge, here indicated at 58, but the welt wrap is cut oc at 60 so that it does not extend over the sewing rib or even over the other edge at 62 or the wider edge 64 of the wedge. This construction saves on material and cost of wrapping fully over the wedge and sewing rib. The welt stitching can be either as in FIG.

j 3 or 4, or it may extend through the welt strip also if desired as at 66. In this case, the welt stitch acts as a decoration as well as being functional.

This new construction lends itself particularly well to modern methods of manufacture, doing away with a great many operations heretofore considered necessary in making a welt platform shoe with a cemented outer sole.

Having thus described my invention and the advantages thereof, I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claims, but what I claim is:

1. A Goodyear Welt shoe construction comprising an insole, a sewing rib thereon, an upper secured to the rib, a welt strip secured to the upper and to the rib along a longitudinal edge of the welt strip, a wedge strip on the welt strip adjacent the edge of the welt strip that is secured to the upper and rib, the welt strip extending along the upper, under the wedge strip, and about the wedge strip, said wedge strip being substantially enclosed by the welt strip, said wedge strip lying in at least a partial overlapping relation to the outside edge of the insole, the wedge strip gradually lessening in thickness from a terminal edge inwardly thereof to the opposite terminal edge.

2. The Goodyear Welt construction of claim 1 wherein said wedge strip has a face that is substantially flat and coplanar.

3. The Goodyear Welt seam construction of claim 1 including an elongated decoration on the welt strip parallel to the wedge strip, said wedge strip having an inner edge intermediate the edges of the welt strip, the decoration being adjacent to said wedge strip inner edge.

4. Welting for shoes comprising a welt strip which is relatively wide, thin and flexible and of generally uniform thickness and a relatively narrow wedge strip having a relatively thick edge portion and an opposite thinner edge portion, said strips being connected together with one side edge of the welt strip being secured substantially in conformance with the thicker edge of the wedge strip, and said wedge strip extending over the surface of the welt strip partially only.

5. The welting of claim 4 wherein a surface of the wedge strip between the edges thereof is substantially fiat and coplanar.

6. The welting of claim 4 wherein the strips are separate and secured together.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,656,564 1/1928 Lyon 36-78 X 1,664,891 4/1928 Lyon 36-78 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,012,933 7/1952 France.

960,524 5 1957 Germany. 1,069,502 11/1959 Germany.

515,060 11/1939 Great Britain.

PATRICK D. LAWSON, Primary Examiner. 

1. A GOODYEAR WELT SHOE CONSTRUCTION COMPRISING AN INSOLE, A SEWING RIB THEREON, AN UPPER SECURED TO THE RIB, A WELT STRIP SECURED TO THE UPPER AND TO THE RIB ALONG A LONGITUDINAL EDGE OF THE WELT STRIP, A WEDGE STRIP ON THE WELT STRIP ADJACENT THE EDGE OF THE WELT STRIP THAT IS SECURED TO THE UPPER AND RIB, THE WELT STRIP EXTENDING ALONG THE UPPER, UNDER THE WEDGE STRIP, AND ABOUT THE WEDGE STRIP, SAID WEDGE STRIP BEING SUBSTANTIALLY ENCLOSED BY THE WELT STRIP, SAID WEDGE STRIP LYING IN AT LEAST A PARTIAL OVERLAPPING RELATION TO THE OUTSIDE EDGE OF THE INSOLE, THE WEDGE STRIP GRADUALLY LESSENING IN THICKNESS FROM A TERMINAL EDGE INWARDLY THEREOF TO THE OPPOSITE TERMINAL EDGE. 